this morning on "early today," no backing down. a florida pastor sticks to his plans to burn the koran despite worldwide condemnation. texas thrashing. the remnants of hermine spawns tornadoes and strands drivers in high waters. and got some moves? a new study on what women like to see in men on the dance floor. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry. and today we begin with burning heat. a problematic pastor in florida is defying the nation's highest ranking authorities saying he will burn copies of the koran on september 11th. with the anniversary of the infamous terror attacks days away the church leader plans attacks on what he calls the evil of islam has been a

lightning rod topic worldwide. nbc's leanne gregg has more. >> reporter: outrageous, disgraceful, but constitutionally league. those are some descriptions of terry jones plans, to pile up the korans and burn them september 11th. despite pleas the small church in gainesville, florida, refuses to call it off. >> we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing. >> reporter: jones says his actions are from a message from god. in jakarta, indonesia, protesters call it a symbol of hate asking the u.s. government to step in and for muslims to stay calm. military, religious leaders are among those asking for the pastor to cancel the event. >> it only calls for new hate and violence. >> i am disheartened by the clear unequivocal condemnation

of this disrespectful disgraceful act that has come from american religious leaders of all faiths. >> reporter: dove and the world outreach center congregation have received hundreds of death threats and church members now carry weapons. an isolated protest launching international concerns of widespread ramifications. leanne gregg, nbc news. well, in ohio yesterday president obama turned up the heat on the republican party, continuing his assault on the gop policies that he says put the economy in a rut in the first place. the president also talked up his own economic plan to prop up the middle class by raising taxes on the wealthy. nbc's steve handelsman has more. >> reporter: in the election year fight over taxes, president obama needs voter os to knows who democrats taxes he would hike and who they would cut. >> we are ready this week, if

they want, to give tax cuts to every american make 2g $50,000 or less. >> reporter: of all the income tax filings last year, 3% were for those making more than $200,000. >> for any income over this amount, the tax rates would just go back to what they were under president clinton. >> reporter: most small businesses pay individual rates. they say a tax hike would cause jobs. the president proposed more help for small business, $200 billion in business tax write-offs, $50 billion in new infrastructure spending. to make his proposal, the president picked cleveland, home of his top republican critic, house gop leader john boehner. >> well, i e don't think the american people want any more stimulus spending coming out of washington. this is not a short-term spending measure. >> reporter: the president went after the republican by name. >> so let me be clear to mr.

boehner and everybody else. we should not hold middle class tax cuts hostage any longer. >> reporter: republican tax cuts for millionaires, said mr. obama, is part of what led to the mess we're in. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, washington. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in california an armed fugitive wanted in washington engaged police in a dramatic two-hour standoff, forcing the evacuation of nearby buildings. the suicidal man even spoke to authori authorities on his cell phone throughout the entire ordeal while sitting in a car. he's eventually surrendered after tear gas was fired. he's being held on suspicion of robbery, possession of a firearm, outstanding warrant and a parole violation. more nasty weather in texas brought on by tropical storm hermine caused a dangerous tornado to develop and touch the ground. it took down fire lines, damaged

several industrial buildings, even sent a semi slamming into a building. no associated deaths or injuries have been reported. also in texas new video shows the dramatic rescue of a woman who became stranded in her car on a highway surrounded by gushing floodwaters. a rescue crew used the ladder to get to the car, pull the woman through her sun roof and lift her to safety. and in south carolina a nervous tad gave his little girl the surprise of a lifetime. just back from a five-month extended tour in the middle east, the master sergeant waited in the cool hallway, the 8-year-old turned the corner and sprung into her dad's arms, crying, but happy once again to be daddy's little girl. how sweet. and now for a look at your national and regional weather. let's check in with nbc's meteorologist bill karins. good morning, bill. >> the tornado was really an

isolated case but it was almost right through downtown dallas. that was what was tropical storm hermine now up in oklahoma. going to spread heavy rain in missouri as we go throughout the day today. there are two weather stories today. one is the cool air that has pushed through the middle states and the other is the heavy rainfall that continue this morning. the worse is tulsa helding into the ozarks. we could see flash flooding in the ozarks during the day today. temperaturewise here's the tropical air from dallas back down to new orleans. but this is fall, 50s, low 50s at that from chicago. we're going to see the temperatures dropping continuously, some areas getting into the 50s, even in the mid-atlantic states. it's a rate break from our summer heat, even raleigh, only in the 70s. the only places that are still hot down here in the gulf and then south carolina, coastal areas of georgia, still hot down there in savannah, and it's

still looking rather warm back here in the west. overall it looks like aed by change in the weather pattern. that's a look at your thursday forecast. now here's a look at the weather outside your window. today we'll see sunshine and beautiful weather through the ohio valley, cincinnati, cleveland, lexington, louisville, back up in through detroit and pittsburgh should be gorgeous. look at pittsburgh, only 68 and partly cloudy. lynn, i promised you the big change and it has arrived for a lot of the big cities in the east. it looks like our summer weather is over for a while. >> done and done. all right, bill. thanks. more jobs open, people are spending less, and why the cost of your morning coffee keeps going up. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, snooki faces the music in court, and you're not going to believe what the judge calls her. also, a game-saving catch and a walk-off in the books. you're watching "early today." she felt lost...

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good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. a federal appeals court has dismissed a lawsuit challenging a controversial cia program known as extraordinary rendition that prisoners to interrogation. the complaint was filed by men shortly after the 9/11 terror attacks who claimed they were tortured in activity. the yesterday's ruling agreed with the obama administration that state's secrets would be put at risk if legal action were allowed to proceed. in a rare interview with an american journalist forter cuban leader fidel castro admits that the modelle he put in place nearly a half a century ago no longer works for cuba. he also criticized iranian president for what he called his

anti-semitic attitudes and denying the holocaust. new figures showing the people dying on the nation's ro roads has fallen to a level in six decades thanks to a combination of seat belts, tougher cars and enforcement of drunk driving laws. and a new study has pinpointed which dancing moves are most likely to attract women. listen up, guys. research showing animation showing good and bad moves show that the best moves tended to move their necks and trufrpgs while the bad only move their arms and legs but if you ask me, both of them look pretty brutal. and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 10,387 after gaining 46 points yesterday. the s&p rose 7 points and the nasdaq climbed 19. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo,

the nikkei added 73 points while in hong kong the hang seng was up 78. the markets were modestly higher yesterday on wall street where the only thing for sure these days is no one seems to know which way the wind is blowing. that was the latest in the string of low volume sessions suggesting little confidence in what's ahead. positive banking news allowed banks here to recover from tuesday's losses. today and tomorrow the jewish new year will likely lead to more lower volume and the tendency for exaggerated swings. the snapshot of the nation's economy confirmed the recovery has slowed down over the summer. on the brighter side job openening rose in july after two months of decline, a hint that companies could be stepping up hiring. but consumer borrowing fell again in july with households cutting back on credit card use for a 23rd consecutive month. bp rose more than 23%.

partners on that rig, transocean and halliburton, both gained over 1%. t"the new york times" soare up 8% after rumor that one may increase his holdings. a yu it in of health insurer united health care group alleges that pacificcare. coffee hit a 13 year high with a price upper 43% in the past three months and finally a clever german farmer has opened up a milk filling station. over 24 hours a day, seven days a way, customers insert money, put a container under the nozzle and you get fresh milk straight from the cow. poor cows. well, multiple homers, a walk-off homer, and a fan who makes a catch but can't hold on.

plus, michael brantley saves the day for the tribe, at least temporarily. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. it's a big story on this thursday is the heavy rain in the middle of the country. your national forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today." my name is vonetta, and i suffer from allergies. [ male announcer ] we asked zyrtec® users what they love about their allergy relief, and what it lets them do. the thing i love most about zyrtec® is that it allows me to be outside. [ male announcer ] we bet you'll love zyrtec®, too -- or it's free. [ vonetta ] it is countdown to marshmallow time. [ woman laughs ] close. whadaya think?ntdown to marshmallow time. i gowhat insurance is that yogi? aflac! the one you really need to have. if you dont have it. thats why you need it. need what? aflac. well if you get hurt and miss work. it won't hurt to miss work. huh? and they give you cash. which is just as good as money.

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if you're just waking up, this is "early today." and in sports, yesterday the yankees were facing a sweep at the hands of the lowly orioles, but as yogi berra once said it ain't over till it's over. here's nbc's mario solis with an early look at all your sports headlines. hi, there, good morning. the yankees have the best record in baseball so there's no reason the orioles would be able to sweep them at home. to the big apple, yanks, 2-1 in the ninth. a two-run walk-off homer for the swisher king. they avoid a sweep with a 3-2 win. the race dropped with a loss to the red sox. scutaro hits not one but two homers into the monster seats. they hit five overall. they beat the rays 11-5. out west they need extra innings. if it's out, game over. but michael brantley is not

having it. leaping catch, walk-off homer. it doesn't get any better than that. from exciting to routine. it doesn't get any better than that. torii hunter. angels win, 23-16. a rocky mountain high. hits a towering home run to give colorado a 5-1 lead against the reeds. tulo with another bomb. finally a funny moment. coco crisp with a home run to left. check out a fan as he tries to make the catch head over heels. he reaches up, reaches in, has it in his hands. look closely. as he gets up, he drops it again and it drops back beyond the fence. he won this one, 4-3. that's your look at sports on "early today." i'm mario solis. >> poor guy. a female pop star faces

female sexual harassment. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. you're watching "early today." [ male announcer ] where are people with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis going? they're discovering the first self-injectable ra medicine you take just once a month. it's simponi™, and taken with methotrexate, it helps relieve the pain, stiffness, and swelling of ra with one dose a month. visit 4simponi.com to see if you qualify for a full year of cost support. simponi™ can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious and sometimes fatal events can occur, such as infections, cancer in children and adults, heart failure, nervous system disorders, liver or blood problems, and allergic reactions. before starting simponi™, your doctor should test you for tb and assess your risk of infections, including fungal infections and hepatitis b. ask your doctor if you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common.

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you can tell the air mass has changed in the east. overnight the temperatures really dropped. today's highs instead of the 80s and 90s are only going to be in the 70s. still hot down along the gulf. that's where it feels like summer. watch out for the heavy rain eventually pushing in to kentucky. well if you're watching us on wthr 13 in indianapolis, indiana, celebrate fall the german way with good food and live entertainment for the whole family at octoberfest in german park. that's your "early today" event of the day, lynn. well, now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. the britney spears body guard who has been threatening sexual ha hasment has filed papers. the papers say she made unwanted advances and repeatedly exposed herself in front of him. she mistreated the children in

front of him asking for his belt so she could, cold, savagely beat them. pop eater reports expecting the worst palin has banned johnston from the set. a family friend told the website, quote, the only person that loves the press more than the pay license is levi himself. "jersey shores" snooki pleaded guilty yesterday to. she was sentenced to a fine and the worst part is the judge scolded her calling her a, quote, lindsay lohan wannabe. lindsay lohan's mom immediately expressed disappointment to tmz that, quote, the judge would say that in a court of law? and i never thought i'd say this but i agree with dina lohan. >> it is a little ridiculous. >> let's be honest. now that he brought it up, who are you going to put on top? >> who's worse?

>> yeah. >> that's a draw. >> it's a draw. and this comes to us from slidell, louisiana, where the first lady taught a lesson in healthy habits and showed off her moves with the pigskin as well. michelle obama and nfl commissioner roger goodell displayed footwork in fnl-style drills. the first lade is good there. it toward encouraging active and healthy lifestyle. lucky kids. well, i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station. fal...all over again.or... [ female announcer ] maybelline redefines nude. [ woman ] the color of real. [ female announcer ] color sensational from maybelline new york. pure pigments for richer, crisper color. honey nectar for our most luscious feel. color sensational. [ woman ] maybe ielline.

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and the lights of the city twinkle as we approach another thursday morning. it's cool and crisp and fall-like. good morning, i'm pat lawson. joe krebss is off. >> welcome to news 4 take for this thursday, september 9th, 2010. two women are in in the hospital after an out of control car went careening in on it a restaurant in northwest washington. it happened where florida avenue, 18th street u street all intersect. and on a nice summer evening, there were a lot of people walking around and eegt outside. news 4's john schriff event n

reports. >> reporter: witnesses were who are foid it see this car end up smashing in front of the kcht eren restaurant. >> there was another car that was turning either up 18th and making a right or was coming across florida avenue and it hooked hike she was trying to avoid the car. lost control of the car. and hit two pedestrians. >> reporter: authorities say it happened around 8:45 wednesday night at a crowded intersection. the fee pail driver was taken in handcuffs pie police into custody. >> we did transport two adult females in their 20s, one is a priority one trauma which means serious and life threat anything, the other not as serious, but -- or i should say serious but not life threatening. of course the police are investigating the circumstances of the crash. the driver remained on the scene, however, she was esal eighted by ems but refused transport. >> this area is just -- there are a lot of pedestrians, a lot of bikes, people walking their dog, people playing softball ou